Adopt a Real, Live Manatee for Mom!
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Marilyn Redwood stands beside a neighbor's manatee mailbox. (Photo by John Redmond.)
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For Immediate Release
Note: A high resolution jpeg (300 dpi) of a manatee image, as well as a photo of Marilyn Redmond, are available upon request.
How do you please Mom this Mother’s Day without breaking the bank? Colleen McColloch from Celina, Texas suggests adopting a real Florida manatee from Save the Manatee Club. It’s a gift Colleen and many others around the country and the world enjoy giving to mom on her special day.
“I’ve chosen two different manatees for Mom from the Club’s adoption program over the years,” said Colleen. “Sometimes I adopt Betsy from Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park because I have a sister named Betsy, but most of the time I chose Doc from Blue Spring State Park because that’s what my children call their grandfather.”
Colleen’s mom, Marilyn Redmond, and her husband split their time between Weatherford, Texas and New Smyrna Beach, Florida. “I first learned about manatees while living in Florida,” explained Colleen. “I’d often see them in the river near my parent’s house in New Smyrna. When we visit there now, we always hope to see the manatees. As a family, we’re concerned about the environment and the animals in it. In Florida, keeping it safe for manatees will also help keep it safer for everyone.”
Making a personal selection from 32 real manatees is part of the fun of adopting from Save the Manatee Club. More importantly, funds from the adoption program are used for the health and welfare of endangered manatees and the areas they inhabit.
An adoption for Mother’s Day costs an easy-on-the-wallet $25. The gift packet comes with an adoption certificate and a color photo of the manatee selected, a biography, a handbook brimming with information about these unique marine mammals, a subscription to the Club’s quarterly newsletter, The Manatee Zone, and the bi-monthly E-newsletter, Paddle Tales. Shipping is free. And this year for Mother’s Day, each new member who joins the Adopt-A-Manatee® program online for a $35 tax-deductible donation, will receive a cute, plush 8-inch manatee.
Manatees are listed as endangered at the state, federal, and international levels. The population is estimated to be about 3,800 concentrated year-round in Florida.
“There were 90 manatee deaths from boat strikes in 2008, a sharp increase from the 5-year average,” said Patrick Rose, aquatic biologist and Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club. “There was also a record high 101 newly born and stillborn manatee deaths. Unfortunately, the first two months of 2009 have been associated with high numbers of watercraft and cold-related mortalities, and record-breaking total mortality. These alarming numbers, combined with growing threats, including the potential loss of winter warm-water sites and loss of aquatic habitat, require us to remain ever-vigilant, always seeking to reduce the number of human-related manatee deaths and advocating for the strongest protections possible.”
Save the Manatee Club, a national, nonprofit advocacy organization, was founded in 1981 by singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett and former U.S. Senator and Florida Governor, Bob Graham.
For more information about manatees and to adopt one for Mother’s Day – contact Save the Manatee Club at 500 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751, call 1-800-432-JOIN (5646), or click here to get more information online.
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